Northwestern dismissed coach Bill Carmody on Saturday morning, after he had become perhaps the school's most successful basketball coach in a 13-year tenure but failed to get the Wildcats to the NCAA Tournament in any season.

A source close to the university told Big Ten Network that Carmody had been removed from his position and the move would be discussed at a Saturday evening press conference. Athletics director Jim Phillips made the decision — a year later than many expected and perhaps a year too soon for the sake of the Wildcats' immediate future.

The news was initially reported by ESPN's Andy Katz.

NU finished 13-19 following a first-round Big Ten Tournament loss to Iowa. The Wildcats won only four conference games in a season plagued by suspensions and injuries, including a season-ender to star forward Drew Crawford.

In addition to Crawford's absence, NU did without wing JerShon Cobb, who was suspended because of academic issues, and lost graduate transfer Jared Swopshire for the final seven games after he injured a knee. Only three of the Wildcats' regulars played in all 31 games.

The issue for Northwestern isn't whether Carmody was given a fair shot, however. He coached the Wildcats 13 years without an NCAA trip, even though four of those seasons featured forward John Shurna, one of the best players in school history.

The issue is what might become of the program in the near term. Recruit Jaren Sina, ranked No. 24 among point guards by Scout.com, is one of the highest-ranked prospects in NU's history. He is likely to ask for a release from his letter of intent following the news of Carmody's dismissal.

Mergin Sina, the player's father and high school coach, told the Chicago Sun-Times earlier, "I'm not saying Jaren won't come, but it will be very difficult for him to step on the floor at Northwestern if coach Carmody doesn't stay."

Mergin Sina was impressed by the work Carmody did given the challenging academic restrictions Northwestern chooses to follow.

"Watching the way he coaches and what he gets out of those kids, as a coach, I'm impressed to a point where I can't figure out why there's even a discussion here," Mergin Sina told the Sun-Times. "He runs a nice system, he doesn't have the talent he needs, but that's why you bring a kid like Jaren in. I'm just trying to figure out where the school is going with this."

It also is possible Crawford might choose to leave the program as a graduate transfer. As a 6-5 wing who averaged 16.1 points and shot 41.2 percent from 3-point range last season, Crawford might be the most coveted grad transfer to ever available under the rule.

Crawford could step into a wide variety of high-level programs and become an immediate regular, the way Brandon Wood did for Michigan State's Big Ten champions last season.